Private Club Corner

California

By Jeffrey A. Rendall, Photos by Jeffrey A. Rendall ... LA QUINTA, CA – It’s a question I often ask golf architects, to describe their first impressions of the land that eventually becomes one of their course designs – and their answers are usually telling, if not descriptive.... “Flat,” replied Keith Evans,... Read More

By Jeffrey A. Rendall, Photos by Jeffrey A. Rendall (with advice from ‘Mr. 59,’ Al Geiberger)... ... PALM DESERT, CA – For those familiar with golf in the California low desert, it’s all about the houses.... ... Face it, golf is an attractive draw for those living in the desert – it offers a... Read More

By Jeffrey A. Rendall, Photos by Jeff Janas... LA QUINTA, CA – It’s often been said that no one should be in a hurry to finish a round of golf, but reality in the 21st century sometimes dictates that we squeeze in a game around a multitude of life’s pressing circumstances.... If... Read More

Delaware

By Jeffrey A. Rendall, Photos By Jeffrey A. Rendall... ... WILMINGTON, DE – ‘Fore!’ A term we’re used to hearing in golf, an accepted custom of shouting towards players (or anyone else) who might possibly be in the estimated drop-zone of your golf ball.... ... Henceforth, watch them dart for cover.... ... Most of... Read More

By Jeffrey A. Rendall, Photos By Jeffrey A. Rendall... ... MILLSBORO, DE – If there’s an important question in life that you just can’t seem to solve on your own, it’s always a good idea to ask Mom for her opinion.... ... Such was the case with Larry Goldstein, developer of The Peninsula Golf... Read More

Florida

By Charles Hancock, Special Contributor to GolfTheMidAtlantic.com; Images Courtesy of Grey Oaks Country Club... ... NAPLES, FL -- Choices. Whether choosing the blue or the gray suit before going off to work, or having beef or fish for dinner, we all make such choices on a daily basis. ... ... Unfortunately, when it comes... Read More

By Jeffrey A. Rendall, Photos By Larry Lambrecht... ... ORLANDO, FL -- Who says you can't improve with age? You'd like to think time and the aging process benefits only fine wine, but in the right circumstances, the principle also applies to professional golfers. Though there's certainly been a youth movement on... Read More

Maryland

By Jeffrey A. Rendall, Photos By Jeff Janas and Jeffrey A. Rendall... Note: This is the first in a series of reviews on Arthur Hills' contributions to golf in the Washington, DC region.... BETHESDA, MD -- Time standing still. Albert Einstein proved that it's not possible, yet some places still seem to... Read More

By Jeffrey A. Rendall; Photos By Kevin Gaydosh and Jeffrey A. Rendall... ... BETHESDA, MD – The Washington area’s Booz Allen Classic is on holiday this year. No, it’s not taking a season off, and it’s not going on vacation – to be played at some exotic alternative locale.... ... In a way, it’s... Read More

By Jeffrey A. Rendall, Photos By Jeffrey A. Rendall and Jeff Janas... ... POTOMAC, MD -- We all love it when a plan comes together. Maybe it's the work involved in preparation; maybe it's because the end result isn't always certain; or maybe it's because the arduous process makes ultimate success even... Read More

By Jeffrey A. Rendall, Photos by Jeff Janas... MITCHELLVILLE, MD – Remember picking a college? You probably thought it was the most important choice you'd ever make, except for maybe choosing a mate.... And if you're like most people, you went through a lengthy selections process, pouring over numerous brochures, talking with... Read More

By Bill Kamenjar, Washington Golf Monthly. Photos By Jeff Janas and Jeffrey A. Rendall ... ... WASHINGTON, DC -- It's the 1990s and throughout the Middle Atlantic private golf courses – many considered classics and a surviving link to golf in the early part of the 20th century - are sagging under... Read More

New Jersey

By Jeffrey A. Rendall, Photos by Jeffrey A. Rendall... RINGOES, NJ – Dreams are mysterious – we all have them, and no one really knows where they come from or why we might dream about a particular subject or person. We can’t shut them off and they rarely come true – but... Read More

North Carolina

By Jeffrey A. Rendall, Photos by Kevin Gaydosh... PINEHURST, NC – It’s often said that going first is never easy, but then again, going second is no picnic either – especially when the first bite at the apple turns out to be a smashing success.... That was the task Tom Fazio and... Read More

By Jeffrey A. Rendall, Photos by Kevin Gaydosh... PINEHURST, NC – “They originally wanted to call it The Farm,” said Chuck Cordell, Director of Marketing at Forest Creek Golf Club, speaking of the minds behind one of the country’s premier private clubs. Located on rolling terrain in the golf mecca that... Read More

South Carolina

By Jeffrey A. Rendall; Photos by David Vier... DAUFUSKIE ISLAND, SC – Haig Point Club is one of those “know it when you see it” types of places.... Sometimes you just know something’s going to be great from a first glance. You see Disneyland? You know it’s going to be fun. You... Read More

By Chuck Hancock; Photos Courtesy of Briar’s Creek Club... ... JOHN’S ISLAND, SC -- Exclusive. Acclaimed. Elite. Preeminent.... ... Pick one of these prior four words to describe The Golf Club at Briar’s Creek, located on Johns Island, South Carolina, and, guess what? You’d be right. And, if you are lucky enough to play... Read More

Virginia

By Jeffrey A. Rendall, Photos by Mike Tanner... ROANOKE, VA – “This one was just meant to be,” said Lester George in prefacing his remarks on the building of Ballyhack Golf Club, the latest of his mid-Atlantic golf architectural masterpieces in the southwestern part of Virginia.... That’s what all the golf architects... Read More

By Jeffrey A. Rendall, Photos by Kevin Gaydosh... VIRGINIA BEACH, VA -- Wide-open spaces; they're becoming a rare breed in our heavily populated 21st century world. Though most city slickers live in densely inhabited areas by choice, they certainly crave chances to get away from it all from time to time.... If... Read More

By Jeffrey A. Rendall, Photos by Aaron Frey... ... LEESBURG, VA -- Some people say art reflects life. That's probably why art takes many forms -- paintings, sculpture, photographs, etchings, motion pictures -- you name it, and there's a medium for it. If life is diverse, then so is the art reflecting... Read More

By Jeffrey A. Rendall, Photos By Jeff Janas... ... ALEXANDRIA, VA – What recently occurred with the golf course renovation at Belle Haven Country Club was more than just a case of out with the old, in with the new. Appropriately put, it was palimpsest at its finest.... ... Palimpsest?... ... Sounds like your nightmare word... Read More

By Jeffrey A. Rendall... ASHBURN, VA -- There's a certain timeless quality to examining historical sites. Maybe it's because they're old; maybe it's because they're rare. Or maybe it's because of who was there and what they did. History's more than just land, buildings and space -- it's heritage.... At the same... Read More

By Jeffrey A. Rendall; Photos by Jeff Smith... ALDIE, VA – Golf legend Jack Nicklaus says his goal in developing golf courses is simple: to do something positive on a particular piece of property – to make it look good, make it a place where people want to come and spend time,... Read More

By Jeffrey A. Rendall, Photos By Jeffrey A. Rendall... HAYMARKET, VA -- Standing on the first tee of most golf courses, you can't help but admire what you see. It might be a boldly shaped seaside landscape reminiscent of the old country; or a tightly contoured parkland fairway bordered by yawning... Read More

By Jeffrey A. Rendall; Photos By Jeffrey A. Rendall and Bob Kubler... ... HAYMARKET, VA -- Just look around, and the young are forced to grow up fast these days. They’re bombarded with adult level images in the popular media, tied down with lots more homework than we were stuck with at... Read More

By Jeffrey A. Rendall, Photos By Aaron Frey... SPOTSYLVANIA, VA – Ecosystems, and golf.... Usually, when you're talking about the latter and the former together, you've got people talking about how one destroys the other. Environmental preservationists often see the reformation of previously undeveloped land as permanently harmful to any particular ecosystem;... Read More

By Jeffrey A. Rendall, Photos By Jeffrey A. Rendall... WILLIAMSBURG, VA -- Pinehurst. There's something about the place that draws golfers to it like Christians to the Holy Land. That may be a bit of a stretched reference, because no piece of golfing ground could ever truly be considered holy --... Read More

By Jeffrey A. Rendall, Photos By Jeffrey A. Rendall... WILLIAMSBURG, VA -- Water, water, everywhere. Most of the time, having water surrounding you isn't a bad thing. After all, folks pay large sums to live near the ocean, sail on a cruise ship or kayak down a raging whitewater river --... Read More

By Jeffrey A. Rendall, Photos By Kevin Gaydosh and Jeffrey A. Rendall... ... MANAKIN-SABOT, VA -- Kinloch Golf Club's been called the 'Augusta National' of Virginia.... ... Most folks, when talking about golf courses, categorize layouts in different ways. But somehow, it usually comes down to comparing them (at least the 'great' ones) to... Read More

By Jeffrey A. Rendall, Photos by Jeffrey A. Rendall... ... LEESBURG, VA – We’re all entrenched in the mindset we take to golf courses, especially the ones we’ve never played before. Pick a set of tees, keep it in play, look over the yardage guide for the hole layouts and try to... Read More

By Jeffrey A. Rendall, Photos By Jeff Janas... ... POTOMAC FALLS, VA -- Hills on the Potomac River. For those familiar with the mighty Potomac, the thought of hills or cliffs along the banks would come as no surprise -- for much of its length above Washington DC, there's nary a flat... Read More

By Jeffrey A. Rendall, Photos By Jeff Janas... ... HAYMARKET, VA -- The double take -- Webster's Dictionary defines it: a delayed reaction to some remark, situation, etc., in which there is at first unthinking acceptance, then startled surprise or a second glance as the real meaning or actual situation becomes clear.... ... It's... Read More

By Jeffrey A. Rendall, Photos by Jeffrey A. Rendall... LEESBURG, VA -- The Potomac, a storied river. Perhaps the only river in the United States more famous is the Mississippi. Along the banks of the legendary Potomac, George Washington lived; the Union and Confederacy fought; and the Nation's Capital resides.... The Mason-Dixon... Read More

By Jeffrey A. Rendall ... Manassas National Battlefield has an equestrian statue of Stonewall Jackson placed near the spot where he reportedly was standing when he received his famous nickname during the First Battle of Manassas/Bull Run. Near the statue itself is a granite monument marking the piece of ground where... Read More

By Jeffrey A. Rendall, Photos By Jeffrey A. RendallRICHMOND, VA – “The course was renovated in 1992, but we restored it in 2003-04,” claimed Golf Architect Lester George, speaking of the Country Club of Virginia’s James River Course.There are those who might think the two terms are birds of a... Read More

By Jeffrey A. Rendall, Photos by Jeffrey A. Rendall... WILLIAMSBURG, VA -- The words Williamsburg, Jamestown, James River and history are synonymous. If there was a club for meaningful words, they'd be members. If consequential words formed a family, they'd be siblings. They belong together like peas in a pod.... But with... Read More

West Virginia

By Jeffrey A. Rendall, Photos By Kevin Gaydosh... ... WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, WV – In the history of golf, there’s never been a celebrity so revered as Sam Snead. Perhaps because of it, the lasting ‘ownership’ of his legend has never been more in dispute -- amongst the many people and places... Read More

By Jeffrey A. Rendall, Photos By Jeff Janas... BRIDGEPORT, WV -- "If someone asked me if there was anything unusual about the Pete Dye Golf Club project, I'd say it was dealing with all the gob," remarked the club's namesake, Pete Dye, when questioned on the layout's soft spot in his... Read More